Life Science: Jen

In Life Science, students are learning a great deal about the ecosystems around them and how the abiotic factors (temperature, precipitation, space, etc) all affect the biotic (living things) elements in the ecosystems. We are currently creating a biome/ecosystem display for each student to explore the food/energy diagrams at a glance and determine a hypothetical response to a change in either organism representation or to an abiotic factor. For example, if a major plant food source were removed, what would happen to the animals. In addition, if the sunlight were to dramatically be changed, how might that affect the ecosystem.

Physical Science: Ryan

Students have been exploring forces, motion, Kinetic and Potential Energy, and more recently, Daniel Bernoulli and his contributions to the scientific community. We’ve made roller coasters while learning about clothoid loops and critical velocity. We’ve dropped helicopters that resemble seed pods from the crow’s nest to the first floor by the lockers to experiment with air resistance and the conversion to rotational motion. Students have been so good lately with buckling down and taking solid notes when working with formulas such as Bernoulli’s continuity formula or KE and PE formulas, we’ve been able to celebrate as a class with some friendly science room ping pong! Ultimately, I’m looking for balance in the classroom and this class is well on its way to finding it.

Earth & Space Science: Ryan

In Earth and Space Science, we’ve been exploring macro systems such as how rocks cycle through the lithosphere and mantle. Students continued learning on tectonic plates, earthquakes, and faults and created news videos anchoring and field reporting on a recent 5.1 quake that occurred in Cushing, OK. Minerals, gems, garnets, and rocks are a common theme in Earth and Space Science that we continue to be fascinated by. We’re hoping to take a field trip in the Spring to pan for gold and hunt for minerals. Next up, we’ll be studying the atmosphere, ocean currents, and planet-wide systems such as jet streams, the magnetism of the poles, and tidal phenomenon.